Can This Colombian Pop Star And YouTube Sensation Make It In America?

Welcome back to Uncharted, an Uproxx original series highlighting the best artists you haven’t heard of, yet. With the support of our friends at Honda, we are following some of the best emerging talent as they follow their dreams and make great music.

Our culture is rife with stories of people who were forced to chase the dreams of their parents and had it go poorly. We’ve all seen that guy who yells obnoxiously at his son during a little league game… and cried when James Van Der Beek told his dad he doesn’t want his life (or was that just me?).

But sometimes it doesn’t end in tragedy, sometimes a child genuinely wants to reach the heights that their parents failed to attain. And sometimes it ends in a runaway success. Take, for example, Karol G. At an early age, she latched on to the same dream as her father, to be a famous singer.

But maybe this is where Karol G’s story veers from the archetype, because her family was not entirely on board. In fact, her mother was vehemently against it, after spending years watching Karol G’s father struggle and fail.

“My mother, she was crying saying, ‘You’re going to make the same mistake as your father. He always wanted to be a singer,'” Karol G reveals. “But he had to get over it.”

Now, with the tables turned, with his daughter pursuing his dream? “Her dad supported her and I was always the bad guy,” Karol G’s mother admits. However, mom finally relented when she finally saw Karol G perform.

“Before she went on stage, I saw her as my daughter,” she confesses. “But once I saw her on stage in front of so many people and surrounded by big names, I saw her as a star.”

And calling her a “star” is not merely a mom gushing about her daughter. Once she got her family onboard, Karol G did become a sensation in her native Colombia by mixing the sounds of pop with the grittier (and typically male-dominated) style of reggaeton.

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But even after achieving that level of ubiquity in her home country — something her father could only dream of — Karol G wasn’t satisfied. The singer/rapper believed that she was good enough (and that her sound was unique enough) to conquer the world. She started with the United States, grinding day and night to break into the highly competitive Latin pop market. Her drive has led her to keep a grueling schedule, filling her days with press stop after press stop. In fact, one saw her making 14 press stops in a day-and-a-half.

And even as she’s starting to reap the benefits of her constant work, Karol G has her eyes set on the horizon. She hopes to expand into Europe, Asia and the rest of the world.

“In the future, I want people to remember Karol G, whatever happens,” she concludes. “I want everyone to remember me as a legend because of my music. I just want to get into all of the hearts in the world.”